Vancouver Wa Real Estate - Elite Realty NW

This weekend Janice and I went to the Energy Trust Better Living Show at the Portland Expo Center to see all of the newest developments in green living. The show surely did not disappoint! Over the next week I will share some of the more noteworthy products that I found.

First on my list of noteworthy items is an awesome recycled glass panel product that is newly created by a company called Second Glass. Second Glass is the brainchild of Ron Sundholm and he describes his company like this: "Second Glass is a small yet fast growing enterprise dedicated to providing architects, building owners, and contractors with a clear choice in glass products. One that answers earth's call for more sustainable building. We began with a simple philosophy - turning waste into savings."

He may think that he is just turning waste into savings but he is also creating beautiful glass panels that can be used for most any application where you would normally use architectural glass. Aren't these panel gorgeous? The most incredible thing in my mind is that they are made from broken windshields!

Ron describes the glass panels by saying "From our office and converting facility in Portland we recover damaged and junk windshields and remanufacture them into a range of high quality uses. Windshields take a lot of landfill space. And new glass manufacturing contributes to global warming. Second Glass is a good example of the classic goals in waste elimination - reduce, reuse, recycle."

If you are in need of unique and beautiful glass panels for a project, I highly encourage you to give Ron a call and discuss the endless possibilities of using his glass. Janice and I walked away hoping to find an project where we would be able to use this gorgeous glass. I think I see a bathroom remodel in our future!

Ron Sundholm at Second Glass can be reached by calling 503 750 3878.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

Our Next Green Step

In an effort to live the lifestyle that we teach, we are right in the middle of performing a major "Green Screen" on our office. Here are a few of the changes that we are making:

• We are changing from the 30% post consumer recycled paper that we have always used to 100% post consumer recycled paper. I found a great deal on some stuff by Boise so we can be greener and save a few extra cents as well. Hooray!
• We have unplugged the fax machine and shifted over to eFax. I should have done this years ago. We have cut our paper usage by AT LEAST 10%. This also makes it easier to go paperless with our contracts and it cut down on our file cabinet space usage.
• I have swapped out the 200W floods in the can lights for the new compact fluorescents. I "donated' the old flood lights to another agent in my office. A much greener solution than throwing them into the nearest landfill.
• We have set all of our computers to the highest energy saving settings possible. Although this is the greenest setting, I might have to make some manual adjustments. My screen is timing out just a little to quickly to be practical in a work environment.
• We are printing non critical documents and drafts on the backs of other printed pages. In our business this is creating an incredible savings.
• We have added a larger recycle bin.
• We are pushing to green up our newsletters. We have been giving people the option to receive them via email rather than a printed hardcopy. Another money saving change as we go forward. This has been hugely popular. More on that later.

These are the biggies for right now. I would love to hear what you guys have been doing to "Walk the Talk." Have I missed something obvious? Give me your ideas.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

Green Built Schools vs. Bottled Water. Which is GREENER?

Tuesday night was our Monthly BIA dinner and Janice and I were looking forward to it. We were excited because they had scheduled a keynote speaker from the Washington Policy Center to address the group on the future of green building in Washington. As one of only 10 Earth Advantage certified realtors in Washington, I have been disappointed in the small amount of sustainable building projects in Clark County and I was eager to hear what the folks up in Olympia were going to do help us catch up with our friends across the river in Portland.(The Greenest City in America!)

As the speaker approached the podium, (I am intentionally not using names here for obvious reasons) he proudly placed a bottle of Arrowhead water next to the microphone stand. I am thinking to myself, "Yeah! We're planning on going after those landfill filling petroleum based..."

But wait?

Did I hear him correctly? Did he just say that this is one of the "Greenest" achievements of the past several years? He did! He went on to explain in detail how the new bottle design is using less plastic than the past designs. This makes perfect sense to him. He never mentioned the rate at which landfills are filling up. The plain fact that the bottle is made from a petroleum based material was never mentioned until some one from the audience asked him about it.

His next topic was a national survey of green built schools. He quickly informed us that studies indicate that previous green built schools were a failure and that on average those schools use 30% more energy than non green built schools. No facts. No charts. No support. He just threw it out there and surmised, while rolling his eyes and smirking (o.k. well, maybe I imagined the rolling eyes and smirking. I was furious by this time!), that that it had something to do with the fact that green built schools use too many windows to allow in nature light and therefore the heating and cooling bills were driving up the power bills. End of story!

He concluded that the residents of Washington need more smart design ideas like the bottled water and less ideas like green built schools! When asked what incentives they were considering to help boost the green building industry he indicated that there weren't any at this time and they are still studying the situation.

The sad part of the story is that we have been behind the curve with these projects since the beginning. The builders in our group need guidance in order to be able to make it through to the next generation of building. Our friend from the Washington Policy Center didn't do anything to help us get there.

As real estate agents in Vancouver Washington, Janice and I strongly feel that it is important to support the other industries that work in and around us. Almost since the day we earned our licenses we have been members of our local building industry association. Our passion has always been green building and sustainable living. We have just volunteered to be part of the newly created Green Building Committee with the Building Industry Association of Clark County.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

REO's - Everything you ever wanted to know. Part 2 - How to buy a REO home

Purchasing a bank owned home is not unlike the purchase any other home from its owner. Find it, visit it, fall in love with it, have your agent write and submit an offer, and wait a few days until the bank gets around to either accepting your offer or sending a counter offer. Sounds simple, doesn't it?

Well it is if you are working with an agent who is experienced in REO transactions. We can give you a list of current REO's in the Vancouver Washington Real Estate Market and, more importantly, we can guide you safely past the hazards that can hide in these types of transactions.

But, what if you choose another agent who isn't up to speed on these types of purchases? Here are just two of the most common and expensive pitfalls that can be encountered if you choose an agent who is inexperienced in this type of buyer representation:

1. TITLE / ESCROW- In bank owned transactions the bank always chooses the title insurance/ escrow company. A title insurance/ escrow company is supposed to be an impartial 3rd party to the transaction. An experienced agent will tell you that they aren't impartial in REO transactions and we work hard to save our clients from paying "junk fees" that are designed to compensate for the deep discounts that they are giving to the bank (seller). This past week we caught a title company charging our client over $800 worth of junk escrow fees. Most agents would have missed these extra charges and you would have been stuck overpaying! BTW, it was $800 on a $110,000 purchase. That is .72% of the purchase in OVER CHARGES. It brought the escrow charges up to 1.4% of the entire purchase. OUTRAGEOUS!

2. INSPECTION- Did you know that common knowledge is that all REO sales are "As Is" sales? Or are they? Just because it is listed as "As Is" in the listing doesn't mean that you are stuck buying a home that has a fundamental defect. We can guide you through this potential mine field and get you through to the other side with a home that is everything of which you dreamed.

These are only 2 of the major issues that might be encountered. What do you do when the banks try to take away your rights to the state mandated disclosure statements? or if they demand that you pay their obligated closing costs? or what if the HUD shows up and you owe all of the unpaid HOA dues for the past year? What if they try to charge you $100 a day for every day that the closing is delayed? (With a minimum of 7 days!)You will wish that you had hired a buyer's agent who was experienced and confident with REO transactions.

The purchase of your new home may be the largest financial transaction of your life. Why would you ever even consider using a real estate agent who isn't the most experienced agent available? By the way, did you know that a buyer's agent is free of charge to the buyer? In Vancouver Washington real estate transactions the seller pays the real estate commissions for both the listing agent and the buyer's agent. Find the best and most experienced agent possible. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Did you miss Part 1? Find it here.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

Those of you who know me also know that I am not the kind of guy who likes to rant. I feel that we are all grown-ups and as such we just need to take care of our selves to be certain that we don't get taken advantage of or cheated. That philosophy has worked very well for me in the real estate business. Plain and simple, "if it ain't in the contract, then it ain't part of the deal!" (my first grade teacher just rolled over in her grave and my mother just felt a strange chill up her spine for that quote!)

My views on that have changed dramatically today. We are representing a buyer who is in a contract to purchase a condominium that is currently bank owned. I am sure that most of you know that in order to purchase a REO, the buyers are going to be forced to give up a few of their rights. As the buyer's agent, you write the offer, submit it to the listing agent who in turn submit it to the bank, and then you wait for the 14 page addendum that is certain to arrive with their counter offer. In that 14 page counter offer you will most certainly find that in order to have the privilege of buying the property, your clients will have to give up their right to choose the title company. Oh, by the way, the bank isn't based out of your city (which is this case is Vancouver Washington) so you will have to use a title company that no one in Vancouver Washington has ever heard of and if you don't like it, DEAL WITH IT. 

Since one of our specialties is buying REO properties, we have dealt with this dozens of times in the past year.

Our client was scheduled to sign all of the final contracts today but we never received a HUD statement. This is my pet peeve when dealing with title companies which were selected by the seller. The loan agent in this deal, who is outstanding at his job and highly recommended by us, emailed his copy of the HUD with some concerns. To cut to the chase, his concerns were the $1,700 in buyer's escrow costs on a $100,000 condo purchase! They had piled on every "JUNK" fee that you could imagine. Totaling over $800. Oddly enough, only the buyer was hit with these fees.

Sadly, after calling them to discuss there abuse of the situation, we only managed to get them to cut a small portion of there blatant larceny. I am thinking that I will start adding a "Title Company Contingency" to my purchase and sale agreements. I am thinking it should read something like this:

"This offer is contingent that the title company that the seller chooses is acceptable to the buyer. Please don't even consider using xxxxxxxx Title!"

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

About 2 1/2 years ago the buzz word in real estate was "Short Sales." These were homes where, based on the market, the owners were forced to sell their home for less money than they owed on the mortgage. Our real estate here in Vancouver Washington was late to fall in to this market but it came none the less. These homes were being sold for a variety of reasons often times including job loss, divorce, health issues, or other financial hardships. Short sale listings flooded the market seemingly over night and buyers started to jump into the market hoping to steal their dream home at a huge discount.

Then reality hit. At the time, banks weren't prepared to negotiate the huge load of  transactions that were piling up and many of these offers died while in process. The average transaction took 45+ days to negotiate with the bank before they ever went to title. Some took even longer. Much longer. I had a short sale listing in the Felida area of Vancouver Washington in which we took the offer on August 13, 2009 and didn't receive final approval from the bank until December 29, 2009. As word of these prolonged negotiation periods leaked out, buyers (and AGENTS!) began to steer clear of the dreaded short sale. Owner/sellers still couldn't afford to make payments and the banks started to foreclose on these homes.

Fast forward to today's market. Now, the buzz word in the real estate market is "REO." What is a REO? R.E.O. is an acronym for Real Estate Owned. It simply means that it is real property that is owned by the bank. REO's are the homes that the bank foreclosed on and are now being listed for sale on the open real estate market.

There is a large amount of liability and risk for a bank to own real property. The bank has to pay to have the home secured, repaired and maintained. They have to insure it. They have to pay the taxes. You get the idea. Without the proper management and care, a vacant home has a way of turning into a condemned property fairly quickly. If that isn't enough incentive to sell the house quickly, then there is also the business side of the equation. A mortgage bank's ability to borrow money from the feds and other banks and then loan it out at a profit is severely compromised if they have too many REO's on their books. The banks in this situation are very motivated sellers!

My plan is to make this information available in 2 or 3 parts. Keep your eyes opn for Part 2 - How to buy a REO Home.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

Ten Reasons Why I Love First Time Buyers in Vancouver Washington!

10. They listen!

9. They qualify!

8. They aren't contingent!

7. They follow directions! (usually.)

6. They don't mind getting pre approved!

5. They don't think that everything they see is "obviously overpriced!"

4. They don't say things like, "I know that it is a great deal, but in this market I can't offer anything close to the list price!

3. They don't think that they know more than us just because they once "sold a house 3 years ago."

2. They smile big and they truly appreciate everything that we do for them!

And THE NUMBER ONE best reason why I love first time buyers is...

The way it makes me feel to see the smiles on their faces when I give them the keys to their new home!

There are a  lot of agents out there who don't like working with first time buyers. They feel that they are going to have to work too hard for what usually amounts to a small sale. (Which of course equals a small commission.) As a real estate agent here in Vancouver Washington, I wholeheartedly disagree. I get great satisfaction out of helping people find and buy their first homes.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

Sustainable SUSHI?

 Janice and I had the pleasure of dining at a very unique restaurant in the Pearl District of Portland last night. It is a seafood restaurant called BAY13. It is not unique because of the food, although I think that they serve the best sushi that I have had in Portland. They are not unique because of the service, although the service last night was exceptional. They are unique because of their mission statement. Quite simply, they are dedicated to serving sustainable seafood.

 BAY13's Mission:

 BAY13 is committed to serving 'sustainable seafood'- fish that is caught or farmed in a manner that protects the individual species and conserves marine habitats. We believe that a healthy ocean is vital to human life and essential to ensuring the long term supply of seafood for all to enjoy. So relax and indulge. The good news is that the seafood from these sources happens to be the highest quality available... so you can have your fish and eat it too.

 BAY13 is located at 701 NW 13th Avenue, Portland, OR 97209.  They are housed in the historic 1909 converted Crane warehouse building in Portland's Pearl District. BAY13 is a modern seafood restaurant, featuring a sushi bar and oyster/raw bar.

Be sure to call for reservations because they fill up fast! 503 227 1133.

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.

Hello Everyone!!!!

The next Vancouver Green Drinks event is right around the corner.

The details:   March 31st at the Downtown Vancouver Hula Boy  

Informal intros will start @ 6PM   Feel free to gather earlier.  

This month the 5 min spiel speaker is Rachael Pecore of the Columbia Riverkeepers. She will speak for a bit about who they are, what they do in general, and about their Adopt-a-River program.  Just like it sounds, volunteers adopt a river stretch and commit to picking up trash, looking out for invasive species, conducting seasonal habitat assessments, and responding to any river emergencies!   Rachael Pecore is the water quality and outreach director for the Columbia Riverkeepers 541.399.1307  

Our 2 min business showcase this month will be Kate Smith from Greystone Consulting

Upcoming events - We are looking forward to our 1 year anniversary for Vancouver Green Drinks!!!!!We will celebrate for our April meeting. Details are soon to follow.  

Block Foam Collection events
For Block Foam (Styrofoam^TM) Recycling:
Recycle your clean, dry block foam at one of the free events listed below.  Please note: Packing peanuts of any type and no polyurethane foam will not be accepted.  Please visit Foam Peanuts to find recycling information.

Participation is open to residents of Vancouver and Clark County. Washington-licensed cars or pickups only! Participants must wait on site to have materials accepted.  No loads larger than what fits in a passenger van, please.

May 2
9 a.m - 1 p.m, Fisher's Landing Transit Center, 3510 SE 164th Avenue, Vancouver

April 4 and June 6
9 a.m. - 1 p.m, Clark College Yellow 1 Parking Lot, Fort Vancouver Way    

I hope to see you there!

When you choose us to handle your Vancouver Washington real estate needs, you choose a team of realtors® who care about you and your family. Buying or selling a home is always more enjoyable when you work with professionals who will listen to your needs and who will work together with you to achieve your objective. We are very familiar with all types a real estate in Clark County and we specialize in Vancouver, Ridgefield and Battle Ground. We are also very experienced with new home and custom home construction having assisted several local builders in selling new neighborhoods in the Vancouver Washington area.  Additionally, we have helped numerous families build their own Vancouver Washington dream homes. We are dedicated to helping you make intelligent, informed decisions and to providing you with exceptional service. Go to www.ernw.org for more information. See our video here.